GCSEs

[Mrs Magpie]

I am also confused by this new 'half a GCSE' there seems to be.

Is it possible the workload content of GCSEs is slightly lower? Know I've posted this before but my sister did exactly half the amount of assignments we had to do for English GCSE (she was two years later)

I have no idea about this 'half a GCSE'. We don't do them where I work. I know the GCSEs are much harder work than anything I did at O level. I'd hate to be a teenager living now. The pressures are horrendous whether at school or otherwise.

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

I have no idea about this 'half a GCSE'. We don't do them where I work. I know the GCSEs are much harder work than anything I did at O level. I'd hate to be a teenager living now. The pressures are horrendous whether at school or otherwise.

Yeah, but at least most of them have access to internet now, and weren't they at one stage able to use calculators?

 

[Mrs Magpie]

You can use calculators in some Maths & Science exams, but by no means all.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

I do think access to the internet has helped, but you have to carefully reference every single thing (google advanced is the plagiarist's nemesis) which I never did once in my O levels.

 

[scifisam]

Using calculators is half the point of some maths - it's not all arithmetic.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

^^^
This

 

[ymu]

They were experimenting with some GCSEs at about that time. I think I have some of the papers kicking around somewhere... </sad>

O Levels died in 87 I think - I'm fairly certain my brother was the last year there or thereabouts.

Yes. I did O' levels in *thinks* 1985. My sister did GCSEs in 1988. I think she was the first year, maybe second.

 

[gentlegreen]

Took O-levels in '75

I only had the option of taking 8.
I got ungraded in English lit and music (should have taken Geography instead)
Failed English language first time and only got a CSE 1 in maths.
Wish I'd taken Latin instead of German ...

So two languages but crap at English
Two sciences, but crap at maths ..

 

[ymu]

Using calculators is half the point of some maths - it's not all arithmetic.

Yeah, absolutely. It's not some kind of quiz - it's supposed to be about skills. If they're working out stuff on paper that in real life they would use a calculator for, then it's wasting time they could use answering more relevant questions. You can't ask many testing questions that can be worked out on paper in a realistic amount of time.

The last place I worked wouldn't let students use their own calculators, which was fuckin' ridiculous because calculators all work differently and they're really confusing if it's a different sort to the one you're used to. We changed the rules for our course. Couldn't give a shit if they have a routine programmed in - it's exactly what they should have if they're working properly. They get most of their marks for knowing the right method, not getting the right number anyway.

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Yes. I did O' levels in *thinks* 1985. My sister did GCSEs in 1988. I think she was the first year, maybe second.

ahem

I did maths GCSE in 1982

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Using calculators is half the point of some maths - it's not all arithmetic.

I don't remember being able to use calculators in any exam. I'm still not sure what lots of the buttons on calculators are for

 

[Mrs Magpie]

The only calculators available during my school days were bulky things that had to be plugged in. My dad had one for work (he did statisticky stuff).

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

The only calculators available during my school days were bulky things that had to be plugged in. My dad had one for work (he did statisticky stuff).

Really, I thought you'd have used an abacus?














*ducks*

 

[BlueSquareThing]

Which is why I was about a GCSE in 1982

Oh, sorry - as I said earlier probably, they started experimenting with stuff in the early 80s - joint CSE/O Level qualifications. I know these existed in geography for sure as I had some papers once upon a time. They were prolly pilots - 82 sounds about right for that.

So you were a guinea pig

 

[Kaye]

Why do they take so many? My niece took 17. Ridiculous!

17 is unusual though. Our kids take 8.

 

[Minnie_the_Minx]

Oh, sorry - as I said earlier probably, they started experimenting with stuff in the early 80s - joint CSE/O Level qualifications. I know these existed in geography for sure as I had some papers once upon a time. They were prolly pilots - 82 sounds about right for that.

So you were a guinea pig

lizzieloo wasn't the guinea pig. I was the guinea pig. I did GCSE maths in 1982. I think there's a bit of confusion here

 

[BlueSquareThing]

lizzieloo wasn't the guinea pig. I was the guinea pig. I did GCSE maths in 1982. I think there's a bit of confusion here

Bugger. I could never get the hang of the difference between guinea pigs, gerbils and hamsters anyway ;-)

 

[_angel_]

I have no idea about this 'half a GCSE'. We don't do them where I work. I know the GCSEs are much harder work than anything I did at O level. I'd hate to be a teenager living now. The pressures are horrendous whether at school or otherwise.

I was thinking 17 - how the hell do they fit them into the day - I did 8 in 1989... are they doing 12 hour days now or is the content less??
Btw my mum did calculus at Maths O level in the 50's/60's but it was not in our Maths GCSE paper so I know they must have shaved some of the content out (and likewise the amount of English coursework went down from me to my sis's year). I hope to God there is less to it than when I was there because to do 17 would have given me a nervous breakdown!!!

I notice my old school seem to have offered vastly more than we ever did (and more people passed too) which is a good thing.

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Apparently spanglechick's nephew who did a similar number did 5 science ones - Physics, Chemistry and Biology and then double science as a combined subject. Good luck to him if they're allowed to do that but unless I've misunderstood that sounds like a scam to me tbh - study for 3 and get 5.

 

[_angel_]

Our school told us all a load of old bollocks and tried to stop people taking three sciences (esp if they were girls), or one science (and since most of us only could take *7* GCSES we didn't have much choice). I'm glad if all that changed now, but don't quite get the five sciences bit ??

 

[Monkeygrinder's Organ]

Our school told us all a load of old bollocks and tried to stop people taking three sciences (esp if they were girls), or one science (and since most of us only could take *7* GCSES we didn't have much choice). I'm glad if all that changed now, but don't quite get the five sciences bit ??

Well it used to be when i was at school you could do single science or double science, which both had elements of all the three individual sciences combined, or the three separate subjects as 3 GCSEs, which had a bit more content for each area. If you're allowed to do the separate subjects and double science as well you're only really learning 3 GCSEs worth of stuff because the double science exam would be similar in content but not quite as advanced.

 

[Geri]

I was at my sisters on Friday and they had the results printed in the local paper - she passed 16 not 17, and I asked my sister how come she took so many and she said she did a BTEC in Sports or something that counts as 3. I scanned the whole section and I couldn't see anyone who passed as many, or who had as many A-C grades *bursts with pride*

It cost Butterfly Child a lot though as they had promised to give her £50 for every A grade

She is at college now doing child care & development, whatever that is.

 

[Mrs Magpie]

It cost Butterfly Child a lot though as they had promised to give her £50 for every A grade

 

[WouldBe]

Why do they take so many?

Because they are easier and you can fit more into the time available.

 

[Ms Ordinary]

We were the guinea pigs for the maths GCSE in 1982.

It was a total farce

I got a U

Ah, the George Lineker defence.

 

[gunneradt]

Because they are easier and you can fit more into the time available.

GCSE's or O Levels have always been easy - with coursework they are virtually impossible not to pass.